A Guide To Carpenter Bee Control In Western Massachusetts

September 17, 2021

In: Stinging Insects

If you’re outdoors enjoying your Western Massachusetts property, dealing with insects flying around can kill the fun. While some bugs are just an annoyance, others can cause more serious problems such as property damage or even health risks.

Bees are an interesting pest because, on one hand, they can be dangerous and aren't good to have around, but, on the other, they do play an important role in the environment as pollinators. However, it’s still best that these stinging insects live somewhere away from your home or business.

While there are many bee species in the area, the carpenter bee is of particular concern because it can both sting and also cause property damage as it tunnels through wood materials to build nests. While they don’t eat wood as termites do, carpenter bees can still damage many wooden structures throughout your property.

In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know about identifying, preventing, and removing these obnoxious bees.

What Do Carpenter Bees Look Like?

Carpenter bees can sometimes be mistaken for other kinds of bees or even wasps, but there are a couple of key characteristics you can look for to tell them apart. To start with, carpenter bees don’t have fur all over their bodies like most bee species. Instead, they have fur located just on their backs. Additionally, carpenter bees have large, black abdomens and don’t have orange or yellow stripes.

Signs Of Carpenter Bees

Overall, carpenter bees are more of a problem for your property than they are for your health. While they can be dangerous if you’re allergic to their venom, they generally aren’t aggressive, and most people won’t end up with serious side effects if stung. However, it’s still a good idea to be cautious around these bees.

Carpenter bees can do a good deal of ruin to your home or business over time as they create holes in wood. They prefer untreated, unpainted wood, and they also generally burrow into softer varieties such as pine and cedar. Over time, this can end up costing you thousands of dollars in repairs. And, their larvae can even attract woodpeckers which can lead to more damage.

Signs of carpenter bee activity include small holes in wooden structures, especially decks and outbuildings, that are about one inch deep. You might also see small piles of sawdust beside these holes.

Five Ways To Prevent Carpenter Bees

Since carpenter bees can cause damage and can also be rather invasive, the best way to go about controlling them is through prevention. The following five steps can help prevent other stinging insects as well.

1. Remove standing water and make sure rainwater can drain by clearing gutters.
2. Keep hot tubs and pools cycled with clean water and apply the correct chemicals.
3. Repair gaps in the roofline of your home or business to make it more difficult for carpenter bees and other insects to get inside.
4. Cover any timber around your property with wire mesh or metal flashing.
5. Make sure not to plant too many flowering kinds of vegetation and avoid overwatering.

While it may seem like a lot of work upfront, preventing carpenter bees and other pests is far less work than removing them once they've established themselves on your property.

Help With Carpenter Bees

Trying to remove carpenter bees on your own can be difficult as this can anger the bees, and they are also rather invasive. So, if you’ve found carpenter bees around your home or business, let the professionals at American Pest Solutions help.

Our ongoing residential and commercial pest control plans will prevent and remove carpenter bees as well as other stinging insects. Contact us today to find out more and get an inspection.